Erscheinung:23.02.2021 | Topic Unauthorised business Tierion Finance/online trading platform tierion-finance.com: BaFin prohibits unauthorised portfolio management and unauthorised proprietary trading
In a notice dated 28 January 2021, BaFin ordered Tierion Finance to immediately cease conducting unauthorised portfolio management and unauthorised proprietary trading.
The company opens trading accounts for customers on its trading platform tierion-finance.com. The accounts are supposed to allow customers to trade in fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies. However, the company makes investment decisions regarding the accounts without first consulting the account holders. In addition, Tierion Finance regularly purchases bitcoins in order to sell them to new customers.
The company is therefore conducting portfolio management under section 1 (1a) sentence 2 no. 3 of the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz – KWG) and proprietary trading under section 1 (1a) sentence 2 no. 4 (c) of the KWG. Tierion Finance does not hold authorisation from BaFin as required under section 32 (1) of the KWG and is therefore conducting unauthorised business.
The trading platform’s website does not contain a legal notice. Furthermore, no other information about Tierion Finance’s business domicile can be found on the website. In documents available to BaFin, the company refers to a business address in London.
Customers have received false tax demands in connection with business activities conducted with Tierion Finance. The corresponding e-mails were received from e-mail addresses with the domain “tax-liability.com”.
